AAMC President and CEO David J. Skorton, MD, and Chief Public Policy Officer Danielle Turnipseed, JD, MHSA, MPP, issued the following statement regarding the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (Labor-HHS) FY 2026 spending bill, which passed the House today as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 (H.R. 7148):
“The AAMC applauds the House and Senate for passing the FY 2026 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill, which includes new funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as well as extensions of several other critical health programs.
We commend lawmakers for continuing to treat NIH-funded medical research as a national priority vital to generating new and better preventive interventions, diagnostics, therapies, and cures for patients. Investing in biomedical research is how America remains first in medical research — first in discovery, first in treatment, and first in cures.
We are especially grateful that the bill recognizes that federal support for essential research operations costs is critical to a thriving national research enterprise. Through provisions that preserve support for facilities and administrative expenses and that establish parameters for potentially frontloading research awards, the bill takes steps to prevent further dramatic decreases in the number of grantees and funded ideas.
We appreciate that the bill includes much needed investments in the health care workforce by providing funding for all Health Resources and Services Administration Title VII health professions and Title VIII nursing workforce development programs, largely maintaining funding levels close to those of previous years. The bill also includes increases in funding for the Medical Student Education Program and the Children’s Hospitals Graduate Medical Education (GME) Program. These critical, proven programs help train the next generation of health care professionals — including physicians, nurses, mental health professionals, public health practitioners, and others — and improve access to care across the nation, including in rural communities and other underserved areas.
In addition, we thank congressional leaders for working to ensure continued access to high-quality care for patients by addressing several expiring clinical policies. This includes extending critical telehealth flexibilities through Dec. 31, 2027, and the Acute Hospital Care at Home Program through Sept. 30, 2030; a two-year delay of scheduled cuts to the Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital program; extending incentive payments for advanced alternative payment models; and delaying scheduled reductions in clinical lab reimbursement through 2026. Moreover, the package includes public health funding extensions for the Teaching Health Center GME program through FY 2029, as well as the National Health Service Corps and Community Health Centers through Dec. 31, 2026. We are also appreciative that the package supports efforts to address suicide, mental health, and burnout among health professionals by reauthorizing previously expired grant programs, under the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act, through FY 2030.”